Old forester Birthday 2002

[TnSquire]

Anyone drink this stuff? I know where a couple bottles are and was wondering if it was worth 29.99.

[jeff]

IMHO, the best of the series so far. Good deal at that price too.

[Virus_Of_Life]

IMHO, the best of the series so far. Good deal at that price too.

But why do they have to put it in such AN OBNOXIOUS BOTTLE? I just get annoyed every time I look at it and because of that very ignorance (yes I'll admit it) will probably never buy one of them.

[TnSquire]

What do you not like about the bottle?

[Sijan]

I like that bottle a lot - looks classy

It is a bit difficult for transport/shipping. but at least ya know it won't tip over on ya

[bluesbassdad]

Christian,

Based on looks alone I actually liked (past tense) that bottle.

Now that I've had a couple of them on my shelves a while, I've come to dislike it for practical reasons. It takes up too much space, it's hard to grasp and retrieve from among other bottles, and learning to pour from it requires practice. I also don't like the flare around the mouth of the bottle (I have to dust it before I pour), but that's a feature of many other bottles these days.

As I said, all of that developed after I liked the bottle originally. IOW, if you think it's obnoxious based on looks alone, you don't know the half of it.

Yours truly,

Dave Morefield

[contrarian]

Well, it's very practical if the room you're in is pitching and yawing wildly: Great for boats or earthquakes! However, it takes up too much space in the liquor cabinet and pouring from it reminds me of drinking a yard of beer. Controlling the flow is a bit of a challenge.

All that said, the bourbon is outstanding and that's $10 less than I paid last year for the 2004 BB (a less enjoyable vintage IMO). Nice find.

Jeff

[ratcheer]

Anyone drink this stuff? I know where a couple bottles are and was wondering if it was worth 29.99.

In my opinion, it was one of the greatest bourbons of all time. I stocked up when it was closed out at around $32. Still have at least two unopened.

Go for it.

Tim

[cas]

I have gone back and forth on this one. Some nights I've found it very appealing, others I've thought it very dense and woody. But I haven't had a bottle in a while so I'm tempted to pick it up again soon.

I agree about the cumbersome bottle though. It does take up more than it's share of area on the shelf.

Craig

[TNbourbon]

Anyone drink this stuff? I know where a couple bottles are and was wondering if it was worth 29.99.

Buy it, especially at that price! If you don't like the bottle, decant it.

[hollywood]

Great for earthquakes and such!...Hey that's funny! Yeah, I think it is a great looking bottle...very original/different. However, not very practical in design in saving space as stated. No doubt, some flaws in some respect. I do agree, it is some of the best tasting bourbon of all-time....if you can learn to pour it from the bottle to get enough into your glass to taste it!!! lol!

[Virus_Of_Life]

OK, you piqued my interests enough so I went to a place I knew had some to see what year it was and totally bummed me out because they had a slew of the 2003 version, no 2002... So how is the 2k3?

.... Upon searching, I now realize there were two 2003 releases and don't remember which this place had. Doh!:banghead:

[TnSquire]

Bought both bottles and have found three others at some other stores in the last couple of weeks. Not as cheap at the others though. Also, since I bought two he gave me a small volume discount! Pays to ask.

[cowdery]

Two points.

First, the whiskey. The idea of Old Forester Birthday Bourbon is that for each release, they select some whiskey they think is really good from the Old Forester stock, but they don't make any effort to be consistent from one release to the next. It's not supposed to be. It's supposed to be something special, though still obviously in the Old Forester family. The point is, two editions can be very different. If you adore one, you may not feel the same way about another.

Second, the bottle. It used to be a big negative with retailers to do an "odd" bottle, but since "odd" was defined as either too high or too wide--both of which cause shelving problems--that didn't give the producers much room to do something distinctive.

The solution has been to only do really out-of-standard bottles with super premium products. The retailer doesn't mind so much because the profit margin is great, and it makes sense for those bottles to be placed somewhere special anyway, not all crammed together with this, that, and everything else.

If you look at some of the tequila and vodka bottles, especially, as well as many liqueurs, the Old Forester Birthday Bourbon bottle is tame.

And incredibly stable.

[TnSquire]

I really like the odd bottles. If they were square/round and tall or stubby with longer neck, how boring would that be?